Drones are unpiloted devices and may be used by the military, police, rescue, scientific, and commercial communities. One example of a drone is an unmanned device capable of controlled, sustained, and powered movement. As such, the designs of drones may consist of vehicles, aircraft, boats, submarines or spacecraft of various sizes, capabilities, and weights. A typical drone consists of a propulsion device, such as an engine, a navigation system, one or more sensors, and possibly cargo. For an aircraft or aerial drone, the sensors may provide information to a ground observer about the terrain the drone overflies, such as video information about a lost hiker in a rescue application, information from laser and/or biological sensors about environmental conditions in a scientific or security application, or a combination of video, laser, biological and other sensors concerning battlefield conditions in a military application. The cargo may be munitions, food, medicine, and/or other goods depending on the mission of the drone.
As the drone is unmanned, computer software executing on one or more processors aboard the drone partially or completely controls the drone. The computer software may control the various functions performed by the drone, perhaps with the aid of an observer.
There continues to be a need for expanded capabilities of unmanned aerial drones.